Tuesday, June 13th, 2023, impacted mothers and hosts LaToya Benton and Roxane Johnson interviewed Jimmy Hill about the fight for justice for his son Jimmy Atchison. 21 year-old Jimmy Atchison was killed by Atlanta police officer Sung Kim on January 22, 2019. At that time, APD was working in conjunction with the FBI and were not wearing body cameras as they were prohibited federally. Police officers chased Jimmy into an apartment building, where Jimmy was hiding in an empty closet and Officer Sung Kim brutally shot him there. As so often happens, Kim accused Jimmy of having a weapon despite being unarmed. Late last year, a grand jury indicted Kim with federal felony murder charges. Check out this episode to learn how you can support the fight for justice for Jimmy Atchison. #JimmyAtchison #JusticeforJimmyAtchison #JusticeForAllStolenLives

On May 30th, 2023, Life After the Impact hosts and fellow impacted mothers Roxane Johnson and LaToya Benton interviewed Oscar Urbina about his son Ruben Urbina. Ruben was murdered by Police Officer Robert Choyce on September 17, 2017. Ruben was a vibrant and compassionate 15-year-old boy dealing with mental health issues. On this day he was experiencing a mental health crisis; instead of receiving the help he needed, Officer Choyce responded with excessive force, shooting Ruben. It was a heartbreaking and unnecessary tragedy. This unfortunate event took place in Prince William County, Virginia. Persons dealing with mental health issues are five times more likely to have fatal encounters with law enforcement.

On May 16th, Life After the Impact's hosts and fellow impacted mothers, Roxane Johnson and LaToya Benton, interviewed Nora Massey about her son Terrol Massey who died on January 3, 2022, while in police custody in New York.Terrol Massey was a healthy 16 year old when he was wrongfully convicted for a crime he did not commit and then forced to enter the criminal justice system, where he was wrongfully placed in solitary confinement for months on end. After nearly two decades in prison as an innocent man, Terrol died due to medical neglect. Terrol’s case is another situation where the system CREATED a crisis. They did not provide healthcare for Terrol and in not doing so their neglect caused his death.

On May 2nd, 2023, Life After the Impact invited Annemarie Grant on the show to talk about the fight for justice for her brother, Thomas Purdy, who died on October 8th, 2015, after being hog tied while in custody of the Washoe County Jail.Purdy was having a mental health crisis at the Peppermill casino where he often visited and was a guest. He was acting erratically and security guards tried to evict him from the property, eventually detaining Purdy. They claimed Purdy “struggled” with security guards, but police investigators later found a recording of one of the guards bragging that he had "dragged (Purdy) down the steps" outside of the casino. Casino security called Reno police officers who immediately arrested Purdy for trespassing.At the Washoe County Jail, Purdy repeatedly told the Sherriff’s deputies that he couldn’t breathe as his hands were tied behind his back and attached with a strap to his ankles — also known as being “hog tied.”“I can’t breathe, ma’am,' he told the jail intake nurse and asked to be sent to the hospital, but instead of medical attention they kept Purdy face down still hog tied for 40+ minutes and 4 deputies put their knee and full body weight on Purdy. Eventually Purdy stopped breathing and he never regained consciousness.An investigation into Purdy's death by the Sparks Police Department found no criminal wrongdoing. The Washoe County Medical Examiner ruled Purdy’s death a homicide by "complications of excited delirium," the same initial “diagnosis” given as the cause of death for George Floyd. But the medical examiner also ruled that the actions of law enforcement officers contributed to Purdy's death directly f stating that if not for the restraint and physical force applied to him by police, it’s unlikely Thomas would have experienced cardiopulmonary arrest when he did.It should be noted that “excited delirium” is a term that has been misapplied and used disproportionately to justify law enforcement-related deaths. Following the death of George Floyd, the American Medical Association’s (AMA) itself forcefully asserted their opposition to the term’s use, stating that there not currently evidence to support “excited delirium” as a medical diagnosis nor a legitimate basis to justify excessive force.Since her brother’s death, Annemarie has fought tirelessly for impacted families across the U.S and the get justice for her brother & his case reopened. She is currently part of a coalition in Boston working to end qualified immunity. Join us to talk about the work being done to demand Justice in Thomas’s cases & the on-going legislative and policy work which Annemarie, in coalition with other impacted families, has been a leader in advancing.

On April 25th Life After the Impact aired its second episode in our “Advocates, Allies & Accomplices” series, in which we invite guests who have specialized knowledge and expertise about the fight of impacted families seeking police accountability & justice for their loved ones. Our second guest is Angelo Pinto, Esq., a movement lawyer, senior strategist, policy guru, and activist in residence at Yale. He served as lead organizer for the Indigenous Peoples March, the Free Meek Mills Campaign and co-founded Justice League NYC & most recently Until Freedom. Following white riots charging the Capitol in January 2021, Pinto wrote, “The State is a complicit co-conspirator for white terror; in fact police murder illustrates the variety, depth and scope of white American terror which means America will not protect Black people. At best we will be the recipients of some form of a delayed and negligent interference. At worst we will be murdered with no media coverage, no governmental action or accountability and will be left alone to pick up the pieces. There has yet to be a protocol for protecting and preserving Black people….” Join us for a discussion about the fight against state-sponsored violence, qualified immunity and what kinds of solutions we must imagine & enact to bring an end to state sponsored terror & police violence.

Life After the Impact: A Live Conversation with Uncle Bobby about the fight for justice for his nephew Oscar Grant hosted by impacted mother's Roxane Johnson & LaToya Benton. On New Year’s Day 2009, 22 year-old Oscar Grant III was fatally shot by former BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) Police Officer Johannes Mehserle on the platform of Fruitvale Station. BART officers had received a call about a fight on a crowded train at 2am. Oscar, who according to reports was not among those fighting, was detained with several others passages. Oscar was restrained and unarmed, when Officer Anthony Pirone kneed Oscar in the head and forced him to lie forward on the platform, and then office Mehserle drew his gun and fatally shot Oscar in the back. Mehserle claims he intended to draw his Taser, but he instead drew his 9mm pistol when he shot Oscar in the back. Bystanders who had been recording the incident as it unfolded, immediate began circulating their cellphone footage of the shooting to media outlets and websites, and the videos quickly went viral and were seen by millions On January 30, 2010, Alameda County prosecutors charged Mehserle with second-degree murder. Mehserle resigned his position and pleaded not guilty. On July 8, 2010, the jury returned its verdict: Mehserle was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, but was acquitted of both second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. After the verdict, initial protests against the ruling were peaceful and organized, but as the night wore things escalated, and there was some rioting, including looting & arson in some places, leading to almost 8 arrests. On July 9, 2010, the U.S. Justice Department opened a civil rights investigation against Mehserle, but no federal charges have ever been filed against Mehserle. On November 5, 2010, Mehserle was sentenced to two years in state prison, but was given double credit for the 146 days he had already served before the trial, reducing his sentence by 292 days! He served his time in the Los Angeles County Jail, occupying a private cell away from other prisoners for just 11 months until his release June 13 2011. The impact of Oscar’s death & the protests it inspired throughout the country. Oscar Grant’s Uncle, Cephus “Uncle Bobby X” Johnson, who is the brother of Oscar’s mother Wanda Johnson, is the co-founded of the The Love Not Blood Campaign, a 501(c)(3) grassroots social justice organization founded in 2014. As stated in their mission the Love Not Blood Campaign’s “guiding principle is simple: Those directly impacted should lead the movement for our right to live free from state sanctioned violence. We pursue this goal through healing circle, healing conferences, movement building, economic justice, and advocacy. Our commitment to addressing police violence – sets us apart.” Families United For4 Justice is one Campaign organized & led by Love Not Blood, which brings together impacted families to build and heal together. In California, the local Families United For4 Justice Network has helped to pass the following Legislation: AB 71 Use of Force Data Collection AB953 Racial Identification Profiling Act SB1421 & SB16 The Right to Know Act AB748 The Audio/Video Release Act AB 392 The Use of Force Act SB16 The Right to Know Expansion Act SB2 The Decertification Act Join us for a conversation with Uncle Bobby about his nephew Oscar Grant and the work he continues to do locally and nationally with impacted families, to eliminate police violence and hold police accountable

A Livestream conversation with Wayne Dozier about the fight for justice for his grandson DJ Henry, hosted by impacted mothers, Roxane Johnson & LaToya Benton, on Life After the Impact’s Facebook page.On October 17th, 2010, Danroy "DJ" Henry, who played football for Pace University, went out to celebrate after a homecoming game. As he and two other students waited outside for his friends in a parked vehicle, a Pleasantville Police officer asked him to move because he was in a fire lane.Before DJ could comply with this order, another officer, Aaron Hess, moved in front of the car with his gun drawn, mounted the hood and shot into the windshield multiple times. DJ was then dragged from the car, handcuffed, and for at least 10 minutes DJ was not given any medical attention. His friend was physically barred from providing CPR.Officer Hess maintained he shot into the car because he feared for his life and had no other option — but It wasn’t just eyewitness and bystanders who denied Hess’s claim that DJ drove towards him. Even Mount Pleasant Police officer Ronald Beckley directly contradicted Hess's claims that DJ endangered him in any way, identifying Hess himself as the aggressor.For 10 years his family fought to have the case reopened, and finally in 2021, the Westchester District Attorney's Office announced it would join a former federal judge in a new review of the case — with an eye toward determining if charges should be brought.